𝔉𝔯𝔬𝔪 ℭ𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔳𝔞𝔩 𝔱𝔬 ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔪𝔬𝔪𝔦𝔩𝔢
Chapter 1
ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ'ꜱ ɴᴏᴛᴇꜱ --- ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴏɴᴇ ɪꜱ ꜰɪɴᴀʟʟʏ ᴅᴏɴᴇ! ɪ'ᴠᴇ ᴡʀɪᴛᴛᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇᴍ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴏʀᴅᴇʀ ᴛᴏ ɴᴏ ᴏɴᴇ'ꜱ ꜱᴜʀᴘʀɪꜱᴇ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ꜱʜᴏᴡꜱ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʜᴇɴᴅʀʏᴋ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀᴍᴀʀᴀ'ꜱ ʟɪꜰᴇ ɪꜱ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴀʀɴɪᴠᴀʟ, ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀ ɴᴇᴡ ᴀᴄᴛ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʙɪɢ ᴛᴏᴘ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ʙɪɢ ᴍᴀɴ ᴛᴏ ɪᴍᴘʀᴇꜱꜱ! ɪ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴏɴᴇ ᴏꜰ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴄᴀʀɴɪᴠᴀʟ ᴛᴏ ᴄʜᴀᴍᴏᴍɪʟᴇ!
ᴛᴀɢʟɪꜱᴛ - - - ᴘᴍ ᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴀᴅᴅᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀɢ ʟɪꜱᴛ!
p r e v i o u s . c h a p t e r | n e x t . c h a p t e r
"Wasn't that fantastic, folks? Let's give it up for the flying Twins, Jada and Jaden!"
The thunderous applause did nothing to ease the throbbing in Amara's temples. She patiently smacked away the hand of the preening elf that wouldn't stop fiddling with her costume. "Relax, Vaeri. You're rubbing all the glitter off."
Vaeri took a step back, flapping her hands anxiously. "Sorry, sorry! I just want everything to be perfect!"
"This is Carnival la Poirier. I think 'acceptable' is the best we can hope for."
Vaeri blanched.
Amara shook her head and patted the elf's arm. "Nothing is going to happen. The dress is perfect. It's not going to fall off, I promise."
Vaeri wrung her hands. "But what if your…pets…rip it open? Or the skirt catches on the platform? Or, gods forbid, a seam rips? Then it'll be my fault the act fails and Mr. Poirier will fire me and I'll have to go back to Boltangate to that awful seamstress and-"
"Vaeri!"
The elf froze midsentence, her pupils pinpricks in her violet eyes.
Amara clasped her cheeks in her hands. "Re. Lax," she commanded. "You're working yourself up over nothing. This is the finest dress I've ever worn. Besides, Luc would never have hired you if he didn't have every confidence that you produce quality goods."
Vaeri didn't need to know that this was a flat-out lie. Judging by the smile that spread across her face, she didn't. "You mean it?"
"Absolutely," Amara replied with a smile of her own. "Now shoo. Go watch your masterpiece from the stands. You'll get a better view that way."
She sighed as Vaeri scampered off, letting the smile slip from her face. Was now the time to admit that she was nervous too? Luc didn't take very kindly to people upstaging him, and her new act had the potential to do just that. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves, but that only made her heart pound faster.
"When did you sign up to be the carnival morale booster?"
Amara turned to face her brother, wrinkling her nose. "You stink."
Hendryk grinned and threw his arms open wide. "Aw, you don't want a good luck hug from your favorite brother?"
She laughed and ducked away from his wriggling fingers. "Get away from me, you disgusting peasant!"
Just as he was about to grab her in his smelly arms, Goknar poked his head around the big top curtain. "If you could be so kind as to tear yourself from your brother's arms," he said dryly, "you're up next."
Amara shoved Hendryk away and dusted herself off. "I'm coming," she told the hobgoblin, ignoring Hendryk's grumbles from behind her. Goknar nodded and led her to stage left, just in time for Silva the Swan to exit. "Good luck," whispered the naiad in passing. Amara had only enough time to nod her thanks before the announcer raised his voice again.
"Aaand next up, we have a real treat for you fine folks! She'll bewitch you with her wondrous visions! Please welcome to the big top - Amara the Incredible Illusionist!"
She sashayed out to the center of the sandy floor to thunderous applause. At least she wasn't an early act that had to perform to awkward silence - small graces. She struck a graceful ballet pose as the magical spotlights shined on her and a suspenseful hush fell over the audience.
A slow, almost mournful tune began to play, echoing throughout the rafters of the big top. Amara raised her hands, clasped in prayer, toward the ceiling as sparkling snowflakes fluttered down. She twisted her hands in a complicated gesture, a dance of fingers. Her skirt and bell sleeves flowed in a wind no one could feel. With a flutter of her fingers, she slammed her palm toward the ground.
A burst of sparks and smoke erupted from the sand. Applause erupted again the sizzling lights faded to reveal a pair of shimmering tigers locked in an intricate waltz. The music raises to a lively jig. The tigers sped up into a Hartley two-step. After several beats, the music changed again, and the dance along with it. The crowd went wild.
But Amara wasn't done. She raised her hand to the ceiling again, the spotlight following. . The tightrope now held an opaque elephant balancing a unicycle on the rope, a tiny banjo in its front feet. It played a jaunty tune that had the audience clapping along in delight - and of course, the tigers danced along.
The best things come in threes. Amara spun around und threw her hands into the air. Sparkles exploded in the air, and when they faded, faeries flooded the room. They danced in the air, forming glittering images. At first, the images were simple - a bunny rabbit hopping around, a pair of birds flitting about a willow tree, a squirrel chasing a runaway nut. The children in the audience cheered the loudest.
But Amara was never satisfied with simple, not when she was capable of so much more. Throwing caution and her fear of Luc's jealousy to the wind, she increased the flow of magic to the faeries. The result was instantaneous - the next image was of a Baerth flying whale swimming over the audience with a pair of winged dolphins.
As the whale shifted into a herd of gallopping unicorns, Amara caught a glimpse of Hendryk in the wings. He flicked the side of his hand over his throat, the universal sign to wrap it up. Sne decided, against the warning bells in the back of her mind, to go out with a bang. With a roar that startled even her, the unicorns became a beautiful crimson dragon that spewed a gust of sparkling orange flames over the audience - they screamed with fear and delight.
The dragon exploded into illusory glitter that rained over the crowd. As they erupted with final applause, Amara staggered into the wings. Her legs shook so badly that she was simply glad that she collapsed behind the curtain instead of before it.
Hendryk didn't pull her to her feet. Instead, he knelt beside her, rubbing the space between her shoulders. "How do you feel?"
"I feel like I need a nap and a steak dinner." That was an understatement. Her hands were numb from the amount of magic she'd pumped through them in such a short amount of time. Every inch of her skin tingled as her body worked overtime to regenerate her spent mana. Forget moving - it took a concentrated effort just to speak.
Hendryk chuckled and scooped her into his arms bridal-style. "Well, the crowd seems to think you did fine... but we know whose opinion really matters. Think you have what it takes to be the new headliner?"
"Maybe." Hopefully not, if she was being honest. She absolutely could not handle repeating this every night. Once a week was already a big maybe. Not that it really mattered - there was not a chance that Luc was going to let her supercede him as top act of the carnival. As fond of her as he was, having practically raised her after saving her and Hendryk from the swamps, he was still top dog at Carnival la Peirior. After all, it had his name on it.
"Well, well, aren't you full of surprises." Hendryk stiffened as, speak of the fiend, Luc Peirior appeared around the corner. He adjusted the gold cufflinks on his navy suit, pinstriped with matching gold stitches. "I always knew you were a quick hand with illusions, but goodness me, that was something else."
"Thank you, Luc." Were her lips supposed to be numb?
There was something almost sinister about the dragonkin's toothy smile. She tried not to take it personally - it was the same smile he always wore. "I need to take the stage. Go get some rest. We'll discuss your future at the carnival another time. Things are looking up for you, Miss Voren."
It was only after he disappeared through the curtain that Hendryk relaxed. He grinned at Amara. "Sounds like good news to me. Ready for a snack?"
"I could eat an entire mammoth."